forgotten me. 15. Will a woman forget her suckling, so as not to have
mercy on the son of her womb? Even these will forget, and (yet) I
will not forget thee. 16. Behold, on My palms have I graven thee; thy
walls (are) before Me continually. 17. Thy sons hasten (to thee); thy
destroyers and thy wasters shall go out from thee. 18. Lift up thine
eyes round about and see; all of them are gathered together, they are
come to thee. (As) I live, saith Jehovah, (I swear) that all of them
as an ornament thou shalt put on, and bind them like the bride.
19. For thy ruins, and thy wastes, and thy land of desolation, for
now shalt thou be too narrow for the inhabitant, and far off shall be
thy devourers. 20. Again shall they say in thine ears, The sons of
thy childlessness. (Too) narrow for me is the place; come near for
me, that I may dwell. 21. And thou shalt say in thine heart, Who hath
produced these for me? and I was bereaved and barren, an exile and a
banished one? And these who brought up? Behold, I was left alone;
these where were they? 22. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold I will
lift up to the nations My hand, and I will set up to the peoples My
standard; and they will bring thy sons in the bosom, and thy
daughters on the shoulders shall be carried. 23. And kings shall be
thy nursing-fathers, and their queens thy nursing-mothers; face to
the ground shall they bow to thee, and the dust of thy feet shall
they lick; and thou shalt know that I am Jehovah, whose waiters shall
not be ashamed.
24. Shall the prey be taken from the mighty, and shall the captivity
of the righteous be delivered? 25. For thus saith Jehovah, Even the
captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the terrible
shall be delivered, and with thy strivers will I strive, and thy sons
will I save. 26. And I will make thy oppressors eat their (own)
flesh, and as with new wine with their blood shall they be drunken;
and all flesh shall know that I am Jehovah thy Saviour, and (that)
thy Redeemer is the Mighty One of Jacob.
L.--[This chapter contains no entirely new element, but a fresh view
of several which have already been repeatedly exhibited. The first of
these is the great truth, that the sufferings of God's people are the
necessary fruit of their own sins, ver. 1. The second is the power of
Jehovah to accomplish their deliverance, vers. 2, 3. The third is the
Servant of Jehovah, His mission, His qualifications for it, His
endurance of reproach, and opposition on account of it, vers. 4-9.
The fourth is the way of salvation and the certain doom of those who
neglect it, vers. 10, 11.]
1. Thus saith Jehovah, Where is the bill of divorcement of your
mother, whom I have sent away? Or which of My creditors (is it) to
whom I have sold you? Behold, for your iniquities ye have been sold,
and for your transgressions has your mother been sent away.
2. Why did I come, and there was no man? (why) did I call, and there
was no one answering? Is My hand shortened, shortened, from
redemption? and is there with Me no power to deliver? Behold, by My
rebuke I will dry up the sea, I will make streams a wilderness; let
their fish stink for want of water and die of thirst. 3. I will
clothe the heavens in blackness, and sackcloth will I make their
covering.
4. The Lord God hath given to Me a ready tongue, that I might know
how to help the weary (with) a word. He will waken, every morning He
will waken for Me the ear, that I may hear like the disciples. 5. The
Lord Jehovah opened for Me the ear, and I resisted not, I did not
draw back. 6. My back I gave to those smiting, and My cheeks to those
plucking (the hair); My face I did not hide from shame and spitting.
7. And the Lord God will help Me, therefore I am not confounded;
therefore I have set My face as a flint, and I know that I shall not
be ashamed. 8. Near is My justifier; who will contend with Me? We
will stand together. Who is My adversary? Let him draw near to Me.
9. Behold, the Lord Jehovah will help Me; who (is) he (that) will
condemn Me? All they like the garment shall grow old; the moth shall
devour them.
10. Who among you is a fearer of Jehovah, hearkening to the voice of
His servant, who walketh in darkness, and there is no light to him?
Let him trust in the name of Jehovah, and lean upon his God. 11. Lo,
all of you kindling fire, girding sparks (or, fiery darts), go in the
light of your fire, and in the sparks ye have kindled. From My hand
is this to you; in pain shall ye lie down.
LI.--[This chapter is a direct continuation of the preceding
declarations with respect to the vocation of the Church, and the
Divine administration towards her. The possibility of her increase,
as previously promised, is evinced by the example of Abraham, from
whom all Israel descended, vers. 1-3. In like manner many shall be
added from the Gentiles, vers. 4-6. Their enemies shall not only fail
to destroy them, but shall be themselves destroyed, vers. 7, 8. This
is confirmed by another historical example, that of Egypt, vers. 9,
10. The same assurances are then repeated, with a clearer promise of
the new dispensation, vers. 11-16. The chapter closes with a direct
address to Zion, who, though helpless in herself and destitute of
human aid, is sure of God's protection and of the destruction of her
enemies and His, vers. 17-23.]
1. Hearken unto Me, ye who are following after righteousness, ye who
are seeking Jehovah; look unto the rock (from which) ye have been
hewn, and the hole of the pit from which ye have been digged. 2. Look
unto Abraham your father and unto Sarah (that) bare you: for I have
called him one, and I will bless him and increase him (still). 3. For
Jehovah hath comforted Zion; He hath comforted all our wastes, and
hath made her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of
the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found in her, thanksgiving and
the voice of melody. 4. Attend unto Me, My people: and My nation,
unto Me give ear: that law from Me shall go forth, and My judgment
for a light of the nations. 5. Near (is) My righteousness, gone forth
is My salvation, and My arm shall judge the nations. For Me shall the
islands wait, and in My arm they shall hope. 6. Raise to the heavens
your eyes, and look unto the earth beneath; and the earth like the
garment (which grows old) shall grow old, and its inhabitants
likewise shall die; and My salvation to eternity shall be, and My
righteousness shall not be broken.
7. Hearken unto Me, ye that know righteousness, people (with) My law
in their heart: hear not the reproach of men, and by their scoffs be
not broken (in spirit). 8. For like the (moth-eaten) garment shall
the moth devour them, and like the (worm-eaten) wool shall the worm
devour them; and My righteousness to eternity shall be, and My
salvation to an age of ages.
9. Awake, awake, put on strength, arm of Jehovah; awake, as (in the)
days of old, the ages of eternities; art Thou not the same that hewed
Rahab in pieces, that wounded the dragon? 10. Art not Thou the same
that dried the sea, the waters of the great deep, that placed the
depths of the sea (as) a way for the passage of redeemed ones?
11. And the ransomed of Jehovah shall return and come to Zion with
shouting, and everlasting joy upon their head; gladness and joy shall
overtake (them), sorrow and sighing have fled away. 12. I, I am He
that comforteth you; who art thou that thou shouldst be afraid of man
(who) is to die, and of the son of man who (as) grass is to be given?
13. And hast forgotten Jehovah thy Maker, spreading the heavens and
founding the earth, and hast trembled continually all the day, from
before the wrath of the oppressor as he made ready to destroy? And
where is (now) the wrath of the oppressor? 14. He hastens bowing to
be loosed, and he shall not die in the pit, and his bread shall not
fail. 15. And I am Jehovah thy God, rousing the sea, and then its
waves roar; Jehovah of hosts (is) His name. 16. And I have put My
words in thy mouth, and in the shadow of My hand I have the earth,
and to say to Zion, Thou art My people. 17. Rouse thyself! rouse
thyself! Arise, Jerusalem! (thou) who hast drunk at the hand of
Jehovah the cup of His wrath; the bowl of the cup of reeling thou
hast drunk, thou hast wrung out.
18. There is no guide to hear of all the sons she has brought forth,
and no one grasping her hand of all the sons she has brought up.
19. Both these things are befalling thee: who will mourn for thee?
Wasting and ruin, famine and sword: who (but) I will comfort thee?
20. Thy sons were faint; they lie at the head of all the streets like
a wild bull in a net, filled with the wrath of Jehovah, the rebuke of
thy God. 21. Therefore pray hear this, thou suffering one, and
drunken, but not with wine; 22. thus saith thy Lord, Jehovah, and thy
God--He will defend His people--Behold, I have taken from thy hand
the cup of reeling, the bowl of the cup of My fury; thou shalt not
continue to drink it any more. 23. And I put it into the hand of
those that afflicted thee, that said to thy soul, Bow down and we
will pass over; and thou didst lay thy back as the ground, and as the
street for the passengers.
LII.--[However low the natural Israel may sink, the true Church shall
become more glorious than ever, being freed from the impurities
connected with her former state, ver. 1. This is described as a
captivity from which she is exhorted to escape, ver. 2. Her
emancipation is the fruit of God's gratuitous compassion, ver. 3. As
a nation she has suffered long enough, vers. 4, 5. The day is coming
when the Israel of God shall know in whom they have believed, ver. 6.
The herald of the new dispensation is described as already visible
upon the mountains, ver. 7. The very ruins of Jerusalem are summoned
to rejoice, ver. 9. The glorious change is witnessed by the whole
world. 10. The true church or Israel of God is exhorted to come out
of Jewry, ver. 11. This exodus is likened to the one from Egypt, but
described as even more auspicious, ver. 12. Its great leader, the
Messiah, as the Servant of Jehovah, must be and is to be exalted,
ver. 13. And this exaltation shall bear due proportion to the
humiliation which preceded it, vers. 14, 15.]
1. Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion! Put on thy garments of
beauty, O Jerusalem, the Holy City! For no more shall there continue
to come into thee an uncircumcised and unclean (person). 2. Shake
thyself from the dust, arise, sit, O Jerusalem! loose the bands of
thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion!
3. For thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Ye were sold for nought, and not
for money shall ye be redeemed. 4. For thus saith the Lord Jehovah,
Into Egypt went down My people at the first to sojourn there, and
Assyria oppressed them for nothing. 5. And now what have I here,
saith Jehovah, that My people is taken away for nothing, its rulers
howl, saith Jehovah, and continually, all the day, My name is
blasphemed? 6. Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in
that day (shall they know) that I am He that said, Behold Me!
7. How timely on the mountains are the feet of one bringing glad
tidings, publishing peace, bringing tidings of good, publishing
salvation, saying to Zion, Thy God reigneth! 8. The voice of thy
watchmen! They raise the voice, together will they shout; for eye to
eye will they see in Jehovah's returning to Zion. 9. Burst forth,
shout together, ruins of Jerusalem! For Jehovah hath comforted His
people, hath redeemed Jerusalem. 10. Jehovah hath bared His holy arm
to the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth have
seen the salvation of our God.
11. Away! away! go out from thence! the unclean touch not! come out
from the midst of her! Be clean, ye armour-bearers of Jehovah.
12. For not in haste shall ye go out, and in flight ye shall not
depart; for going before you (is) Jehovah, and bringing up your rear
the God of Israel.
LII. 13.--[The great leader of this exodus, the Messiah, as the
Servant of Jehovah, must be and is to be exalted, ver. 13. And this
exaltation shall bear due proportion to the humiliation which
preceded it, vers. 14, 15.
LIII.--Notwithstanding these and other prophecies of the Messiah, He
is not recognised when He appears, ver. 1. He is not the object of
desire and trust, for whom the great mass of the people have been
waiting, ver. 2. Nay, His low condition, and especially His
sufferings are vicarious, not accidental or incurred by His own
fault, vers. 4-6. Hence, though personally innocent, He is perfectly
unresisting, ver. 7. Even they for whom He suffers may mistake His
person and His office, ver. 8. His case presents the two extremes of
righteous punishment and perfect innocence, ver. 9. But the glorious
fruit of these very sufferings will correct all errors, ver. 10. He
becomes a Saviour only by becoming a substitute, ver. 11. Even after
the work of expiation is completed, and His glorious reward secured,
the work of intercession will be still continued, ver. 12.]
13. Behold, my Servant shall do wisely, shall rise and be exalted and
high exceedingly. 14. As many were shocked at Thee--so marred from
man His look, and His form from the sons of men--15. so shall He
sprinkle many nations; concerning Him shall kings stop their mouth,
because what was not recounted to them they have seen, and what they
had not heard they have perceived.
LIII.--1. Who hath believed our report? and the arm of Jehovah, to
whom (or, upon whom) has it been revealed?
2. And He came up like the tender plant before Him, and like a root
from a dry ground; He had no form nor comeliness, and we shall see
Him, and no sight that we should desire it. 3. Despised and forsaken
of men (or ceasing from among men), a man of sorrows and acquainted
with sickness, and like one hiding the face from Him (or, us),
despised, and we esteemed Him not.
4. Surely our sicknesses He bore, and our griefs He carried; and we
thought Him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. 5. And He was
pierced (or, wounded) for our transgression, bruised (or, crushed)
for our iniquities; the chastisement (or, punishment) for our peace
(was) upon Him, and by His stripes we were healed. 6. And we like
sheep had gone astray, each to his own way we had turned, and Jehovah
laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
7. He was oppressed and He humbled Himself, and He will not open His
mouth--as a lamb to the slaughter is brought, and as a sheep before
its shearers is dumb--and He will not open His mouth. 8. From
distress and from judgment He was taken; and in His generation who
will think, that He was cut off from the land of the living; for the
transgression of my people (as) a curse for them? 9. And He gave with
wicked (men) His grave, and with a rich (man) in His death; because
(or, although) He had done no violence, and no deceit (was) in His
mouth.
10. And Jehovah was pleased to crush (or, bruise Him), He put Him to
grief (or, made Him sick); if (or, when) His soul shall make an
offering for sin, He shall see (His) seed, He shall prolong (His)
days, and the pleasure of Jehovah in His hand shall prosper. 11. From
the labour of His soul (or, life) He shall see, He shall be
satisfied; by His knowledge shall my servant (as) a righteous one,
give righteousness to many, and their iniquities He will bear.
12. Therefore will I divide to Him among the many, and with the
strong shall He divide the spoil, in lieu of this that He bared unto
death His soul, and with the transgressors was numbered, and He
(Himself) bare the sin of many, and for the transgressors He shall
make intercession.
LIV.--[Instead of suffering from the loss of her national
prerogatives, the Church shall be more glorious and productive than
before, ver. 1. Instead of being limited to a single nation, she
shall be so extended as to take in all the nations of the earth,
vers. 2, 3. What seemed at first to be her forlorn and desolate
condition shall be followed by a glorious change, ver. 4. He who
seemed to be the God of the Jews only shall now be seen to be the God
of the Gentiles also, ver. 5. The abrogation of the old economy was
like the repudiation of a wife, but its effects will show it to be
rather a renewal of the conjugal relation, ver. 6. The momentary
rejection shall be followed by an everlasting reconciliation, vers.
7, 8. The old economy, like Noah's flood, can never be repeated, ver.
9. That was a temporary institution; this shall outlast the earth
itself, ver. 10. The old Jerusalem shall be forgotten in the
splendour of the new, vers. 11, 12. But this shall be a spiritual
splendour, springing from a constant Divine influence, ver. 13.
Hence it shall be also a holy and a safe state, ver. 14. All the
enemies of the Church shall either be destroyed or received into her
bosom, ver. 15. The warrior and his weapons are alike God's creatures
and at His disposal, ver. 16. In every conflict, both of hand and
tongue, the Church shall be triumphant, not in her own right or her
own strength, but in that of Him who justifies, pardons, and saves
her, ver. 17.]
1. Shout, O barren, that didst not bear; break forth into a shout and
cry aloud, thou that didst not writhe (in childbirth): for more (are)
the children of the desolate than the children of the married
(woman), saith Jehovah. 2. Widen the place of thy tent, and the
curtains of thy dwelling let them stretch out; spare not (or, hinder
it not); lengthen thy cords and strengthen (or, make fast) thy
stakes. 3. For right and left shalt thou break forth (or, spread),
and thy seed shall possess (or, dispossess or inherit) nations, and
repeople ruined (or, forsaken) cities.
4. Fear not, for thou shalt not be ashamed; and be not abashed, for
thou shalt not blush; for the shame of thy youth thou shalt forget,
and the reproach of thy widowhood thou shalt not remember any more.
5. For thy husband (is) thy Maker, Jehovah of hosts is His name; and
thy Redeemer (is) the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth
shall He be called. 6. For as a wife forsaken and grieved of spirit
has Jehovah called thee, and (as) a wife of youth, for she shall be
rejected, said thy God. 7. In a little moment I forsook thee, and in
great mercies I will gather thee. 8. In a gush of wrath I hid My face
for a moment from thee, and in everlasting kindness I have had mercy
on thee, saith thy Redeemer, Jehovah. 9. For the waters of Noah is
this to Me; what I sware from the waters of Noah passing again over
the earth [_i.e.,_ that they should not pass], so have I sworn from
being angry [that I will not be angry] against thee, and from
rebuking [that I will not] rebuke thee. 10. For the mountains shall
move and the hills shall shake; but My favour from thee shall not
move, and My covenant of peace shall not shake, saith thy pitier,
Jehovah. 11. Wretched, storm-tossed, comfortless! Behold, I am laying
(or, about to lay) thy stones in antimony, and I will found thee upon
sapphires; 12. and I will make thy battlements (or, pinnacles) ruby,
and thy gates to (be) sparkling gems, and all thy borders to (be)
stones of pleasure (or delight). 13. And all thy children disciples
of Jehovah, and great (or, plentiful) the peace of thy children.
14. In righteousness shalt thou be established: be far from
oppression, for thou shalt not fear, and from destruction, for it
shall not come near to thee. 15. Lo, they shall gather, they shall
gather, not at My sign (or, signal). Who has gathered against thee?
He shall fall away to thee. 16. Lo, I have created the smith, blowing
into the fire of coal, and bringing out a weapon for his work; and I
have created the wasters to destroy. 17. Every weapon (that) shall be
formed against thee shall not prosper, and every tongue that shall
rise with thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage
of the servants of Jehovah, and their righteousness from Me, saith
Jehovah.
LV.--[By the removal of the old restrictions, the Church is, for the
first time, open to the whole world, as the source or medium of the
richest blessings, ver. 1. It is only here that real nourishment can
be obtained, ver. 2. Life is made ours by an oath and covenant, ver.
3. The Messiah is a witness of the truth and a commander of the
nations, ver. 4. As such He will be recognised by many nations who
before knew nothing of the true religion, ver. 5. These are now
addressed directly, and exhorted to embrace the offered opportunity,
ver. 6. To this there is every encouragement afforded in the Divine
mercy, ver. 7. The infinite disparity between God and man should have
the same effect, instead of hindering it, vers. 8, 9. The commands
and promises of God must be fulfilled, vers. 10, 11. Nothing,
therefore, can prevent a glorious change in the condition of the
world under the dispensation of the Spirit, ver. 12. This blessed
renovation, being directly promotive of God's glory, shall endure for
ever, ver. 13.]
1. Ho, every thirsty one, come ye to the waters; and he to whom there
is no money, come ye, buy (food) and eat; and come, buy, without
money and without price, wine and milk. 2. Why will ye weigh money
for (that which is) not bread, and your labour for (that which is)
not to satiety? Hearken, hearken unto me, and eat (that which is)
good, and your soul shall enjoy itself in fatness. 3. Incline your
ear and come unto me, hear and your soul shall live (or, let it
live), and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, the sure
mercies of David. 4. Lo, (as) a witness of nations I have given him,
a chief and commander of nations. 5. Lo, a nation (that) thou knowest
not shalt thou call, and a nation (that) have not known thee shall
run unto thee, for the sake of Jehovah thy God, and for the Holy One
of Israel, for He hath glorified thee.
6. Seek ye Jehovah while He may be found; call ye upon Him while He
is near. 7. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the man of iniquity
his thoughts, and let him return unto Jehovah, and He will have mercy
upon him, and to our God for He will abundantly pardon (literally,
multiply to pardon). 8. For My thoughts (are) not as your thoughts,
nor your ways My ways, saith Jehovah. 9. For (as) the heavens are
higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My
thoughts than your thoughts.
10. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and
thither returneth not, but when it has watered the earth and made it
bear and put forth, and has given seed to the sower and bread to the
eater, 11. so shall My word be, which goeth out of My mouth: it shall
not return unto Me void (or, without effect), but when it has done
that which I desired, and successfully done that for which I sent it.
12. For with joy shall ye go forth, and in peace shall ye be led; the
mountains and the hills shall break out before you into a shout, and
all the trees of the field shall clap the hand. 13. Instead of the
thorn shall come up the cypress, and instead of the nettle shall come
up the myrtle, and it shall be to Jehovah for a name, for an
everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
LVI.--[The day is coming when the righteousness of God is to be fully
revealed, without the veils and shackles which had hitherto confined
it, ver. 1. For this great change, the best preparation is fidelity
to the spirit of the old economy, ver. 2. No personal or national
distinctions will be any longer recognised, ver. 3. Connection with
the Church will no longer be a matter of hereditary right, vers. 4,
5. The Church shall be henceforth coextensive with the world, vers.
6-8. But first the carnal Israel must be abandoned to its enemies,
ver. 9. Its rulers are neither able nor worthy to deliver the people
or themselves, ver. 10-12.]
1. Thus saith Jehovah, Keep ye judgment (or justice) and do
righteousness; for near (is) My salvation to come, and My
righteousness to be revealed. 2. Happy the man (that) shall do this,
and the son of man that shall hold it fast, keeping the Sabbath from
profaning it, and keeping the hand from doing evil.
3. And let not the foreigner say, who has joined himself unto
Jehovah, saying, Jehovah will separate me wholly from His people; and
let not the eunuch say, Lo, I am a dry tree. 4. For thus saith
Jehovah to (or, as to) the eunuchs, who shall keep My Sabbaths, and
shall choose what I delight in, and take fast hold of My covenant,
5. I will give to them in My house and within My walls a place and a
name better than sons and than daughters; an everlasting name will I
give to him, which shall not be cut off. 6. And (as to) the
foreigners joining themselves to Jehovah to serve Him and to love the
name of Jehovah, to be to him for servants, every one keeping the
Sabbath from profaning it, and holding fast my covenant; 7. I will
bring them to My mount of holiness, and make them joyful in My house
of prayer, their offerings and their sacrifices (shall be) acceptance
on My altar; for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all
nations. 8. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, the gatherer of the outcasts
of Israel, Still (more) will I gather upon him (in addition) to his
gathered.
9. All ye beasts of the field, come to devour, all ye beasts in the
forest! 10. His watchmen (are) blind all of them, they have not known
(or, do not know); all of them (are) dumb dogs, they cannot bark,
dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber. 11. And the dogs are greedy,
they know not satiety, and they, the shepherds (or, the shepherds
themselves), know not how to distinguish (or, act wisely): all of
them to their own way are turned, (every) man to his own gain from
his own quarter (or, without exception). 12. Come ye, I will fetch
wine, and we will intoxicate ourselves with strong drink, and like
to-day (shall be) to-morrow, great, abundantly, exceedingly.
LVII.--[The righteous who died under the old economy were taken away
from the evil to come, vers. 1, 2. The wicked who despised them were
themselves proper objects of contempt, vers. 3, 4. Their idolatry is
first described in literal terms, vers. 5, 6. It is then represented
as a spiritual idolatry, vers. 7-9. Their obstinate persistence in
sin is represented as the cause of their hopeless and remediless
destruction, vers. 10-13. A way is prepared for spiritual Israel to
come out from among them, vers. 14. The hopes of true believers shall
not be deferred for ever, vers. 15, 16. Even these must be chastened
for their sins, ver. 17. But there is favour in reserve for all true
penitents, without regard to national distinctions, vers. 18. 19. To
the incorrigible sinner, on the other hand, peace is impossible,
vers. 20, 21.]
1. The righteous perisheth, and there is no man laying (it) to heart,
and men of mercy are taken away, with none considering (or
perceiving) that from the presence of evil the righteous is taken
away. 2. He shall go in peace (or, enter into peace); they shall rest
upon their beds--walking straight before him.
3. And ye (or, as for you), draw near hither, ye sons of the witch,
seed of the adulterer and the harlot. 4. At whom do ye amuse
yourselves? At whom do ye enlarge the mouth, prolong the tongue? Are
ye not children of rebellion (or, apostasy), a seed of falsehood?
5. Inflamed (or, inflaming yourselves) among the oaks (or,
terebinths), under every green tree, slaughtering the children in the
valleys, under the clefts of the rocks. 6. Among the smooth (stones)
of the valley (or, the brook) is thy portion; they, they are thy lot;
also to them hast thou poured out a drink-offering, thou hast brought
up a meat-offering. Shall I for these things be consoled (_i.e.,_
satisfied without revenge)?
7. On a high and elevated mountain thou hast placed thy bed; also
there (or, even thither) hast thou gone up to offer sacrifice. 8. And
behind the door and the door-post thou hast placed thy memorial, far
away from me thou hast uncovered (thyself or thy bed), and hast gone
up, thou hast enlarged thy bed and hast covenanted from them, thou
hast loved their bed, thou hast provided room. 9. And thou hast gone
to the king in oil, and hast multiplied thine unguents, and hast sent
thine ambassadors even to a far-off (land), and hast gone (or, sent)
down even to hell.
10. In the greatness of thy way (or, the abundance of thy travel)
thou hast labour; (but) thou hast not said, There is no hope. Thou
hast found the life of thy hand; therefore thou art not weak. 11. And
whom hast thou feared and been afraid of, that thou shouldst lie? And
Me thou hast not remembered, thou hast not called to mind (or, laid
to heart). Is it not (because) I hold My peace, and that of old, that
thou wilt not fear Me? 12. I will declare thy righteousness and thy
works, and they shall not profit (or, avail) thee. 13. In thy crying
(_i.e.,_ when thou criest for help), let thy gatherings save thee!
And (yet) all of them the wind shall take up, and a breath shall take
away, and the (one) trusting in Me shall inherit the land and possess
My holy mountain.
14. And he shall say, Cast up, cast up, clear the way, take up the
stumbling-block from the way of the people! 15. For thus saith the
High and Exalted One, inhabiting eternity, and Holy is His name: On
high and holy will I dwell, and with the broken and humble of spirit,
to revive the spirit of the humble and to retrieve the heart of the
broken (or, contrite ones). 16. For not to eternity will I contend,
and not to perpetuity will I be wroth; for the spirit from before Me
will faint, and the souls (which) I have made.
17. For his covetous iniquity I am wroth and will smite him, (I will)
hide Me and will be wroth; for he has gone on turning away (_i.e.,_
persevering in apostasy) in the way of his heart (or, of his own
inclination). 18. His ways I have seen, and I will heal him, and will
guide him, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners.
19. Creating the fruit of the lips, Peace, peace to the far off and
to the near, saith Jehovah, and I will heal him.
20. And the wicked (are) like the troubled sea, for rest it cannot,
and its waters cast up mire and dirt. 21. There is no peace, saith my
God, to the wicked.
LVIII.--[The rejection of Israel as a nation is the just reward of
their unfaithfulness, ver. 1. Their religious services are
hypocritical, ver. 2. Their mortifications and austerities are
nullified by accompanying wickedness, vers. 3-5. They should have
been connected with the opposite virtues, vers. 6, 7. In that case
they would have continued to enjoy the divine favour, vers. 8, 9.
They are still invited to make trial of this course, with an ample
promise of prosperity and blessing to encourage them, vers. 10-14.]
1. Cry with the throat, spare not, like the trumpet raise thy voice,
and tell to My people their transgression, and to the house of Jacob
their sins.
2. And Me day (by) day they will seek, and the knowledge of My ways
they will delight in (or, desire), like a nation which has done
right, and the judgment of its God has not forsaken; they will ask of
Me righteous judgments, the approach to God (or, of God) they will
delight in (or, desire).
3. Why have we fasted, and Thou hast not seen (it)? afflicted our
soul (or, themselves) and Thou wilt not know (it)? Behold in the day
of your fast ye will find pleasure, and all your labours ye will
exact. 4. Behold, for strife and contention ye will fast, and to
smite with the flat of wickedness; ye shall not (or, ye will not)
fast to-day (so as) to make your voice heard on high. 5. Shall it be
like this, the fast that I will choose, the day of man's humbling
himself? Is it to hang his head like a bulrush, and make sackcloth
and ashes his bed? Wilt thou call this a fast, and a day of
acceptance (an acceptable day) to Jehovah?
6. Is not this the fast that I will choose, to loosen bands of
wickedness, to undo the fastenings of the yoke, and to send away the
crushed (or broken) free, and every yoke ye shall break? 7. Is it not
to break unto the hungry thy bread? and the afflicted, the homeless,
thou shalt bring home; for thou shalt see one naked and shalt clothe
him, and from thine own flesh thou shalt not hide thyself.
8. Then shall break forth as the dawn thy light, and thy healing
speedily shall spring up; then shall go before thee thy
righteousness, and the glory of Jehovah shall be thy rereward (or,
bring up thy rear). 9. Then shalt thou call, and Jehovah will answer;
thou shalt cry, and He will say, Behold Me (here I am), if thou wilt
put away from the midst of thee the yoke, the pointing of the finger,
and the speaking of vanity.
10. And (if) thou wilt let out thy soul to the hungry, and the
afflicted soul will satisfy, then shall thy sight arise in the
darkness, and thy gloom as the (double light or) noon. 11. And
Jehovah will guide thee over, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and
thy bones shall He invigorate, and thou shalt be like a watered
garden, and like a spring of water whose waters shall not fail.
12. And they shall build from thee the ruins of antiquity (or,
perpetuity), foundations of age and age (_i.e.,_ of ages) shalt thou
raise up: and it shall be called to thee (or, thou shalt be called)
Repairer of the breach, Restorer of paths for dwelling.
13. If thou wilt turn away thy foot from the Sabbath to do thy
pleasure on My holy day, and wilt call the Sabbath a delight (and)
the holy (day) of Jehovah honourable, and wilt honour it by not doing
thy own ways, by not finding thy pleasure and talking talk; 14. then
shalt thou be happy in Jehovah, and I will make thee rule upon the
heights of the earth, and I will make thee eat the heritage of Jacob
thy father, for Jehovah's mouth hath spoken it.
LIX.--[The fault of Israel's rejection is not in the Lord, but in
themselves, vers. 1, 2. They are charged with sins of violence and
injustice, vers. 3, 4. The ruinous effects of these corruptions are
described, vers. 5, 6. Their violence and injustice are fatal to
themselves and to others, vers. 7, 8. The moral condition of the
people is described as one of darkness and hopeless degradation,
vers. 9-15. In this extremity, Jehovah interposes to deliver the true
Israel, vers. 16, 17. This can only be effected by the destruction of
the carnal Israel, vers. 18. The Divine presence shall no longer be
subjected to local restrictions, vers. 19. A Redeemer shall appear in
Zion to save the true Israel, vers. 20. The old dispensation shall
give place to the dispensation of the Word and Spirit, which shall
last for ever, ver. 21.]
1. Behold, not shortened is Jehovah's hand from saving, and not
benumbed is His ear from hearing. 2. But your iniquities have been
separating between you and your God, and your sins have hid (His)
face from you, so as not to hear.
3. For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with
iniquity; your lips have spoken falsehood, your tongue will utter
wickedness. 4. There is none calling with justice, and there is none
contending with truth; they trust in vanity and speak falsehood,
conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity. 5. Eggs of the basilisk
they have hatched, and webs of the spider they will spin (or, weave);
the one eating their eggs shall die, and the crushed (egg) shall
hatch out a viper. 6. The webs shall not become (or, be for)
clothing, and they shall not cover themselves with their works: their
works are works of mischief (or, iniquity), and the doing of violence
is in their hands. 7. Their feet to evil will run, and they will
hasten to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of
mischief (or, iniquity); wasting and ruin are in their paths. 8. The
way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their
paths; their courses they have rendered crooked for them; every one
walking in them knows not peace.
9. Therefore is judgment far from us, and righteousness will not
overtake us; we wait for light, and behold darkness; for splendours,
(and) in obscurities we walk. 10. We grope like the blind for the
wall, like the eyeless we grope; we stumble at noon-day as in
twilight, in thick darkness like the dead. 11. We growl like the
bears, all of us, and like the doves we moan; we wait for justice and
there is none, for salvation (and) it is far from us. 12. For our
transgressions are multiplied before Thee, and our sins testify
against us; for our transgressions are with us, and our
iniquities--we know them; 13. to transgress and lie against Jehovah,
and to turn back from behind our God, to speak oppression and
departure, to conceive and utter from the heart words of falsehood.
14. And judgment is thrust (or, driven) back, and righteousness afar
off stands; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness cannot
enter. 15. Then truth was missed (_i.e.,_ found wanting), and whoso
departed from evil made himself a prey (or, was plundered).
Then Jehovah saw it, and it was evil in His eyes that there was no
judgment (or, practical justice). 16. And He saw that there was no
man, and He stood aghast that there was no one interposing; and His
own arm saved for Him, and His own righteousness, it upheld Him.
17. And He clothed Himself with righteousness as a coat of mail, and
a helmet of salvation on His head, and He clothed Himself with
garments of vengeance (for) clothing. 18. According to (their) deeds,
according will He repay, wrath to His enemies, (their) desert to His
foes, to the isles (their) desert will He repay. 19. And they shall
fear from the west the name of Jehovah, and from the rising of the
sun His glory; for it shall come like a straitened stream, the spirit
of Jehovah raising a banner in it.
20. Then shall come for Zion a Redeemer, and for the converts from
apostasy in Jacob, saith Jehovah. 21. And I (or, as for me)--this
(is) My covenant with them, saith Jehovah. My Spirit which is on
thee, and My words which I have placed in thy mouth, shall not depart
out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith
Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever (or, from now and to eternity).
LX.--[The prophet describes the approaching change as a new and
Divine light rising upon Zion, ver. 1. He contrasts it with the
darkness of surrounding nations, ver. 2. Yet these are not excluded
from participation in the light, ver. 3. The elect in every nation
are the children of the Church, and shall be gathered to her, vers.
4, 5. On one side he sees the Oriental caravans and flocks
approaching, vers. 6, 7. On the other, the commercial fleets of
western nations, vers. 8, 9. What seemed rejection is in fact the
highest favour, ver. 10. The glory of the true Church is her freedom
from local and national restrictions, ver. 11. None are excluded from
her pale but those who exclude themselves and thereby perish, ver.
12. External nature shall contribute to her splendour, ver. 13. Her
very enemies shall do her homage, ver. 14. Instead of being cast off,
she is glorified for ever, ver. 15. Instead of being identified with
one nation, she shall derive support from all, ver. 16. All that is
changed in her condition shall be changed for the better, ver. 17.
The evils of her former state are done away, ver. 18. Even some of
its advantages are now superfluous, ver. 19. What remains shall be no
longer precarious, ver. 20. The splendour of this new dispensation is
a moral and spiritual splendour, but attended by external safety and
protection, ver. 21, 22. All this shall certainly and promptly come
to pass at the appointed time, ver. 22.]
1. Arise, be light; for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah
has risen upon thee. 2. For behold, the darkness shall cover the
earth, and a gloom the nations, and upon thee shall Jehovah rise, and
His glory upon thee shall be seen. 3. And nations shall walk in thy
light, and kings in the brightness of thy rising.
4. Lift up thine eyes round about (_i.e.,_ in all directions) and
see; all of them are gathered, they come to thee, thy sons from afar
shall come, and thy daughters at the side shall be borne. 5. Then
shalt thou see (or, fear), and brighten up (or, overflow), and thy
heart shall throb and swell; because (or, when) the abundance of the
sea shall be turned upon thee, the strength of nations shall come
unto thee.
6. A stream of camels shall cover thee, young camels (or,
dromedaries) of Midian and Ephah, all of them from Sheba shall come,
gold and incense shall they bear, and the praises of Jehovah as good
news. 7. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered for thee, the rams
of Nebaioth shall minister to thee, they shall ascend with good-will
(or, acceptably) My altar, and My house of beauty I will beautify.
8. Who are these that fly as a cloud and as doves to their windows?
9. Because for Me the isles are waiting (or, must wait) and the ships
of Tarshish in the first place, to bring thy sons from far, their
silver and their gold with them, for the name of Jehovah thy God, and
for the Holy One of Israel, because He has glorified thee.
10. And strangers shall build thy walls, and their kings shall serve
thee; for in My wrath I smote thee, and in My favour I have had mercy
on thee. 11. And thy gates shall be open continually, day and night
they shall not be shut, to bring into thee the strength of nations
and their kings led (captive, or, in triumph). 12. For the nation and
the kingdom which will not serve thee shall perish, and the nations
shall be desolated, desolated.
13. The glory of Lebanon to thee shall come, cypress, plane, and box
together, to adorn the place of My sanctuary, and the place of My
feet I will honour.
14. Then shall come to thee bending the sons of thy oppressors, then
shall bow down to the soles of thy feet all thy despisers, and shall
call thee the City of Jehovah, Zion the holy place of Israel (or, the
Zion of the Holy One of Israel).
15. Instead of thy being forsaken and hated, and with none passing
(through thee), and I will place thee for a boast of perpetuity, a
joy of age and age. 16. And they shalt suck the milk of nations, and
the breast of kings shalt thou suck, and thou shalt know that I,
Jehovah, am thy Saviour, and (that) thy Redeemer (is) the Mighty One
of Jacob. 17. Instead of brass (or, copper) I will bring gold, and
instead of iron I will bring silver, and instead of wood brass, and
instead of stones iron, and I will place (or, make) thy government
peace, and thy rulers righteousness.
18. There shall be no more heard violence in thy land, desolation and
ruin in thy borders (or, within thy bounds); and thou shalt call
salvation thy walls, and thy gates praise. 19. No more shall be to
thee the sun for a light by day, and for brightness the moon shall
not shine to thee, and Jehovah shall become thy everlasting light,
and thy God thy glory. 20. The sun shall set no more, and thy moon
shall not be withdrawn; for Jehovah shall be unto thee an eternal
light, and completed the days of thy mourning. 21. And thy people,
all of them righteous, for ever shall inherit the earth, the branch
(or, shoot) of My planting, the work of My hands, to glorify Myself
(or, to be glorified). 22. The little one shall become a thousand,
and the small one a strong nation; I, Jehovah, in its time will
hasten it.
LXI.--[After describing the new condition of the Church, he again
introduces the great Personage by whom the change is to be brought
about. His mission and its object are described by Himself in vers.
1-3. Its grand result shall be the restoration of a ruined world,
ver. 4. The Church, as a mediator between God and the revolted
nations, shall enjoy their solace and support, vers. 5, 6. The shame
of God's people shall be changed to honour, ver. 7. The Church once
restricted as a single nation, shall be recognised and honoured among
all, ver. 9. He triumphs in the prospect of the universal spread of
truth and righteousness, vers. 10, 11.]
1. The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah (is) upon me, because Jehovah hath
anointed me to bring good news to the humble, He hath sent me to bind
up the broken in heart, to proclaim to captives freedom, and to the
bound open opening (of the eyes or of the prison doors); 2. to
proclaim a year of favour for Jehovah, and a day of vengeance for our
God; to comfort all mourners, 3. to put upon Zion's mourners--to give
them a crown instead of ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, a garment
of praise for a faint spirit; and it shall be called to them (or,
they shall be called) the oaks of righteousness, the planting of
Jehovah (_i.e.,_ planted by Jehovah) to glorify Himself.
4. And they shall bind up the ruins of antiquity, the desolations of
the ancients they shall raise, and shall renew the cities of ruin
(_i.e.,_ ruined cities), the desolations of age and age. 5. Then
shall stand strangers and feed your flocks, and the children of
outland (shall be) your ploughmen and your vine-dressers. 6. And ye
(or more emphatically, as for you), the priests of Jehovah shall ye
be called, the ministers of our God shall be said to you (or, of
you), the strength of nations shall ye eat, and in their glory shall
ye substitute yourselves. 7. Instead of your shame (ye shall have)
double, and (instead of their) confusion they shall celebrate their
portion; therefore in their land shall they inherit double,
everlasting joy shall be to them. 8. For I am Jehovah, loving
justice, hating (that which is) taken away unjustly, and I will give
their hire truly, and an everlasting covenant I strike for them.
9. Then shall be known among the nations their seed, and their issue
in the midst of the peoples. All seeing them shall acknowledge them
that they are a seed Jehovah has blessed.
10. (I will) joy, I will joy in Jehovah, let my soul exult in my God;
for He hath clothed me with garments of salvation, a mantle of
righteousness has He put on me, as a bridegroom adjusts his priestly
crown, and as the bride arrays her jewels. 11. For as the earth puts
forth its growth, and as the garden makes its plants to grow, so
shall the Lord Jehovah make to grow righteousness and praise before
all the nations.
LXII.--[The words of the great Deliverer are continued from the
foregoing chapter. He will not rest until the glorious change in the
condition of His people is accomplished, ver. 1. They shall be
recognised by kings and nations as the people of Jehovah, vers. 2, 3.
She who seemed to be forsaken is still His spouse, vers. 4, 5. The
Church is required to watch and pray for the fulfilment of the
promise, vers. 6, 7. God has sworn to protect her and supply her
wants, ver. 8, 9. Instead of a single nation, all the nations of the
earth shall flow unto her, ver 10. The good news of salvation shall
no longer be confined, but universally diffused, ver 11. The glory of
the Church is the redemption of the world, ver. 12.]
1. For Zion's sake I will not be still, and for Jerusalem's sake I
will not rest, until her righteousness go forth as brightness, and
her salvation as a lamp (that) burneth. 2. And nations shall see thy
righteousness, and all kings thy glory; and there shall be called in
thee a new name, which the mouth of Jehovah shall utter. 3. And thou
shalt be a crown of beauty in Jehovah's hand, and a diadem of royalty
in the palm of thy God. 4. No more shall it be called to thee (shalt
thou be called) Azubah (Forsaken), and thy land shall no more be
called Shemamah (Desolate), but thou shalt be called Hephzibah (my
delight is in her), and thy land Beulah (married), for Jehovah
delights in thee, and thy land shall be married. 5. For (as) a young
man marrieth a virgin, (so) shall thy sons marry thee, and (with) the
joy of a bridegroom over a bride shall thy God rejoice over thee.
6. On thy walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and
all the night long they shall not be silent. Ye that remind Jehovah,
let there be no rest to you, 7. and give no rest to Him, until He
establish and, until He place Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
8. Sworn hath Jehovah by His right hand, and by His arm of strength,
If I give (_i.e.,_ I will not give) thy corn any more as food to
thine enemies, and if the sons of the outland shall drink thy new
wine which thou hast laboured in (I am not God). 9. For those
gathering it shall eat it, and shall praise Jehovah, and those
collecting it shall drink it in My holy courts (or, in the courts of
My sanctuary). 10. Pass, pass through the gates, clear the way of the
people, raise high, raise high the highway, free (it) from stones,
raise a banner (or, a signal) over the nations. 11. Behold, Jehovah
has caused it to be heard to the end of the earth, Say ye to the
daughter of Zion, Behold thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is
with Him and His hire before Him. 12. And they shall call them the
Holy People, the redeemed of Jehovah, and thou shalt be called
Derushah (sought for), Ir-lo-neczabah (city not forsaken).
LXIII.--[The influx of the Gentiles into Zion having been described
in the preceding verses, the destruction of her enemies is now
sublimely represented as a sanguinary triumph of Jehovah or the
Messiah, vers. 1-6. The prophet then supposes the catastrophe already
past, and takes a retrospective view of God's compassion towards His
people, and of their unfaithfulness during the old economy, vers.
7-14. He assumes the tone of earnest supplication, such as might have
been offered by the believing Jews when all seemed lost in the
destruction of the commonwealth and temple, vers. 15-19.]
LXIV.--[This chapter is inseparable from the one before it. The
strongest confidence is expressed in the Divine power, founded upon
former experience, vers. 1-3. The two great facts of Israel's
rejection as a nation, and the continued existence of the Church, are
brought together in ver. 4. The unworthiness of Israel is
acknowledged still more fully, ver. 5, 6. The sovereign authority of
God is humbly recognised, ver. 7. His favour is earnestly implored,
ver. 8. The external prerogatives of Israel are lost, ver. 9. But
will God for that cause cast off the true Israel, His own people?
ver. 10.]
1. Who (is) this coming from Edom, bright (as to His) garments from
Bozrah, this one adorned in His apparel, bending in the abundance of
His strength?
I, speaking in righteousness, mighty to save.
2. Why (is there) redness to Thy raiment, and (why are) Thy garments
like (those of) one treading in a wine-press?
3. The press I have trodden by Myself, and of the nations there was
not a man with Me; and I will tread them in My anger, and trample
them in My fury, and in their juice shall spirt upon My garments, and
all My vesture I have stained. 4. For the day of vengeance (is) in My
heart, and the year of My redeemed is come. 5. And I look, and there
is none helping; and I stand aghast, and there is none sustaining;
and My own arm saves for Me, and My fury it sustains Me. 6. And I
tread the nations in My anger, and I make them drunk in My wrath, and
I bring down to the earth their juice.
7. The mercies of Jehovah I will cause to be remembered, the praises
of Jehovah, according to all that Jehovah hath done for us, which He
hath done for them, according to His compassions, and according to
the multitude of His mercies.
8. And He said, Only they are My people, (My) children shall not lie
(or, deceive), and He became a Saviour for them. 9. In all their
enmity He was not an enemy, and the angel of His face (or, presence)
saved them; in His love and in His sparing mercy He redeemed them,
and He took them up and carried them all the days of old. 10. And
they rebelled, and grieved His Holy Spirit (or, Spirit of holiness),
and He was turned from them into an enemy, He himself fought against
them.
11. And he remembered the days of old, Moses (and) his people. Where
is He that brought them up from the sea, the shepherd of His flock?
Where is He that put within him His Holy Spirit? 12. Leading them by
the right hand of Moses (and) His glorious arm, cleaving the waters
from before them, to make for Him an everlasting name? 13. Making
them walk in the depths, like the horse in the desert they shall not
stumble. 14. As the herd into the valley will go down, the Spirit of
Jehovah will make him rest. So didst Thou lead Thy people, to make
for Thyself a name of glory.
15. Look (down) from heaven and see from Thy dwelling-place of
holiness and beauty! Where is Thy zeal and Thy might (or, mighty
deeds)? The sounding of Thy bowels and Thy mercies towards me have
withdrawn themselves. 16. For Thou (art) our Father; for Abraham hath
not known us, and Israel will not recognise us; Thou Jehovah art our
Father, our Redeemer of old (or, from everlasting) is Thy name.
17. Why wilt Thou make us wander, O Jehovah, from Thy ways? (why)
wilt Thou harden our heart from Thy fear? Return, for the sake of Thy
servants, the tribes of Thy inheritance. 18. For a little Thy holy
people possessed, our enemies trod down Thy sanctuary. 19. We are of
old, Thou has not ruled over them, Thy name has not been called upon
them. LXIV.--1. Oh that Thou wouldst rend the heavens (and) come
down, (that) from before Thee the mountains might quake (or flow
down), 2. as fire kindles brush, fire boils water--to make known Thy
name to Thine enemies, from before Thee nations shall tremble. 3. In
Thy doing fearful things (which) we expect not, (oh that) Thou
wouldst come down, (that) the mountains before Thee might flow down.
4. And from eternity they have not heard, they have not perceived by
the ear, the eye hath not seen, a God beside Thee (who) will do for
(one) waiting for Him.
5. Thou hast met with one rejoicing and executing righteousness; in
Thy ways shall they remember Thee; behold, Thou hast been wroth, and
we have sinned; in them is perpetuity, and we shall be saved. 6. And
we were like the unclean all of us, and like a filthy garment all our
righteousness (virtues or good works), and we faded like the (fading)
leaf all of us, and our iniquities like the wind will take us up (or,
carry us away). 7. And there is no one calling on Thy name, rousing
himself to lay hold on Thee; for Thou hast hid Thy face from us, and
hast melted us because of (or, by means of) our iniquities.
8. And now Jehovah, our Father (art) Thou, we the clay and Thou our
potter, and the work of Thy hands (are) we all. 9. Be not angry, O
Jehovah, to extremity, and do not to eternity remember guilt; lo,
look, we pray thee, Thy people (are) we all. 10. The holy cities are
a desert, Zion is a desert, Jerusalem a waste. 11. Our house of
holiness and beauty (in) which our fathers praised Thee has been
burned up with fire, and all our delights (or, desirable places) have
become a desolation. 12. Wilt Thou for these (things) restrain
Thyself, O Jehovah, wilt Thou keep silence and afflict us to
extremity?
LXV.--[The grand enigma of Israel's simultaneous loss and gain is
solved by a prediction of the calling of the Gentiles, ver. 1. This
is connected with the obstinate unfaithfulness of the chosen people,
ver. 2. They are represented under the two main aspects of their
character at different periods, as gross idolaters and as pharisaical
bigots, vers. 3-5. Their casting off was not occasioned by the sins
of one generation, but of many, vers. 6, 7. But even in this rejected
race there was a chosen remnant, in whom the promises shall be
fulfilled, vers. 8-10. He then reverts to the idolatrous Jews, and
threatens them with condign punishment, vers. 11, 12. The fate of the
unbelieving carnal Israel is compared with that of the true spiritual
Israel, vers. 13-16. The gospel economy is described as a new
creation, ver. 17. Its blessings are represented under glowing
figures borrowed from the old dispensation, vers. 18-19. Premature
death shall be no longer known, ver. 20. Possession and enjoyment
shall no longer be precarious, vers. 21-23. Their very desires shall
be anticipated, ver. 24. All animosities and noxious influences shall
cease for ever, ver. 25.]
1. I have been inquired of by those that asked not, I have been found
by those that sought Me not; I have said, Behold Me, behold Me, to a
nation (that) was not called by My name. 2. I have spread (or,
stretched) out My hands all the day (or, every day) to a rebellious
people, those going the way not good, after their own thoughts (or,
designs)--3. the people angering Me to My face continually,
sacrificing in the gardens, and censing on the bricks; 4. sitting in
the graves, and in the holes they will lodge, eating the flesh of
swine, and broth of filthy things (is in) their vessels; 5. the (men)
saying, Keep to thyself, come not near to me, for I am holy to
thee,--these (are) a smoke in My wrath, a fire burning all the day
(or, every day). 6 and 7. Lo, it is written before Me, I will not
rest except I repay, and I will repay into their bosom your
iniquities and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith
Jehovah, who burned incense on the mountains, and on the hills
blasphemed Me, and I will measure their first work into their bosom.
8. Thus saith Jehovah, as (when) juice is found in the cluster, and
one says, Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it, so will I do for
the sake of My servants, not to destroy the whole. 9. And I will
bring forth from Jacob a seed, and from Judah an heir of My
mountains, and My chosen ones shall inherit it, and My servants shall
dwell there. 10. And Sharon shall be for (or, become) a home of
flocks, and the valley of Achor a lair of herds, for My people who
have sought Me.
11. And (as for) you, forsakers of Jehovah, the (men) forgetting My
holy mountain, the (men) setting for Fortune a table, and the (men)
filling for Fate a mingled draught; 12. and I have numbered you to
the sword, and all of you to the slaughter shall bow; because I
called and ye did not answer, I spake and ye did not hear, and ye did
the (thing that was) evil in my eyes, and that which I desired not ye
chose.
13 and 14. Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Lo! My servants
shall eat and ye shall hunger; lo, My servants shall drink and ye
shall thirst; lo, My servants shall rejoice and ye shall be ashamed;
lo, My servants shall shout from gladness of heart, and ye shall cry
from grief of heart, and from brokenness of spirit ye shall howl.
15. And ye shall leave your name for an oath to My chosen ones, and
the Lord Jehovah shall slay thee, and shall call His servants by
another name (lit. call another name to them), 16. (by) which the
(man) blessing himself in the land (or, earth) shall bless himself by
the God of truth, and (by which) the (man) swearing in the land (or,
earth) shall swear by the God of truth, because forgotten are the
former enmities (or, troubles), and because they are hidden from My
eyes.
17. For lo I (am) creating (or, about to create) new heavens and a
new earth, and the former (things) shall not be remembered, and shall
not come up into the mind (lit. on the heart). 18. But rejoice and be
glad unto eternity (in) that which I (am) creating, for lo, I (am)
creating Jerusalem a joy, and her people a rejoicing. 19. And I will
rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people; and there shall not be
heard in her again the voice of weeping and the voice of crying.
20. There shall be no more from there an infant of days, and an old
man who shall not fulfil his days, for the child a hundred years old
shall die, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed. 21
and 22. And they shall build houses and inhabit (them), and shall
plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them, they shall not build and
another inhabit, they shall not plant and another eat; for as the
days of a tree (shall be) the days of My people, and the work of
their hands My chosen ones shall wear out (or, survive). 23. They
shall not labour in vain, and they shall not bring forth for terror;
for the seed of the blessed of Jehovah are they, and their offspring
with them. 24. And it shall be (or, come to pass), that they shall
not yet have called and I will answer, yet (shall) they (be) speaking
and I will hear. 25. The wolf and the lamb shall feed as one, and the
lion like the ox shall eat straw, and the serpent dust (for) his
food. They shall not hurt and they shall not corrupt (or, destroy) in
all My holy mountain, saith Jehovah.
LXVI.--[This chapter winds up the prophetic discourse with an express
prediction of the change of dispensation, and a description of the
difference between them. Jehovah will no longer dwell in temples made
with hands, ver. 1. Every sincere and humble heart shall be His
residence, ver. 2. The ancient sacrifices, though Divinely
instituted, will henceforth be as hateful as the rites of idolatry,
ver. 3. They who still cling to the abrogated ritual will be
fearfully but righteously requited, ver. 4. The true Israel cast out
by these deluded sinners shall ere long be glorified, and the carnal
Israel fearfully rewarded, vers. 5, 6. The ancient Zion may already
be seen travailing with a new and glorious dispensation, vers. 7-9.
They who mourned for her seeming desolation, now rejoice in her
abundance and her honour, vers. 10-14. At the same time the carnal
Israel shall be destroyed, as apostates and idolaters, vers. 15-17.
The place where they once occupied shall now be filled by the elect
from all nations, ver. 18. To gather these, a remnant of the ancient
Israel shall go forth among the Gentiles, ver. 19. They shall come
from every quarter, and by every mode of conveyance, ver. 20. They
shall be admitted to the sacerdotal honours by the chosen people,
ver. 21. This new dispensation shall not be temporary, like the one
before it, but shall last for ever, ver. 22. While the spiritual
Israel is thus replenished from all nations, the apostate Israel
shall perish by a lingering decay in the sight of an astonished
world, ver. 23, 24.]
1. Thus saith Jehovah, the heavens (are) My throne, and the earth My
footstool; where is (or, what is) the house which ye will build for
Me, and where is (or, what is) the place of My rest? 2. And all these
My own hand made, and all these were (or, are), saith Jehovah; and to
this one will I look, to the afflicted and contrite in spirit, and
trembling at My word.
3. Slaying the ox, smiting a man--sacrificing the sheep, breaking a
dog's neck--offering an oblation, blood of swine--making a memorial
of incense, blessing vanity--also they have chosen their ways, and in
their abominations has their soul delighted. 4. I also will choose
their vexations, and their fear I will bring unto them; because I
called and there was no answering, I spake and they did not hear, and
they did evil in My eyes, and that which I delight not in they chose.
5. Hear the word of Jehovah, ye that tremble at His word. Your
brethren say, (these) hating you and casting you out for My name's
sake, Jehovah will be glorified, and we shall gaze upon our joy--and
they shall be ashamed. 6. A voice of tumult from the city! A voice
from the temple! The voice of Jehovah, rendering requital to His
enemies!
7. Before she travailed she brought forth, before her pain came she
was delivered of a male. 8. Who hath heard such a thing? Who hath
seen such things? Shall a land be brought forth in one day, or shall
a nation be born at once? For Zion hath travailed, she hath also
brought forth her children. 9. Shall I bring to the birth and not
cause to bring forth? saith Jehovah. Or am I the one causing to bring
forth, and shall I shut up? saith thy God.
10. Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and exult in her, all that love her;
and be glad with her with gladness, all those mourning for her.
11. that ye may suck and be satisfied from the breast of her
consolations, that ye may milk out and enjoy yourselves, from the
fulness (or, the full breast) of her glory. 12. For thus saith
Jehovah, Behold, I am extending to her peace like a river, and like
an overflowing stream the glory of nations; and ye shall suck; on the
side shall ye be borne, and on the knees shall ye be dandled. 13. As
a man who his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you, and in
Jerusalem shall ye be comforted. 14. And ye shall see, and your heart
shall leap (with joy), and your bones like grass shall sprout, and
the hand of Jehovah shall be known to His servants, and He shall be
indignant at His enemies.
15. For lo, Jehovah in fire will come, and like the whirlwind His
chariots, to appease in fury His anger, and His rebuke in flames of
fire. 16. For by fire is Jehovah striving and by His sword with all
flesh, and multiplied (or, many) are the slain of Jehovah. 17. The
(men) hallowing themselves and the (men) cleansing themselves to (or,
towards) the gardens after one in the midst, eaters of swine's flesh
and vermin and mouse, together shall cease (or, come to an end),
saith Jehovah.
18. And I--their works and their thoughts--it is come--to gather all
the nations and the tongues--and they shall come and see My glory.
19. And I will place in them (or, among them) a sign, and I will send
of them survivors (or, escaped ones) to the nations, Tarshish, Pul,
and Lud, drawers of the bow, Tubal and Javan, distant isles, which
have not heard my fame, and have not seen My glory, and they shall
declare My glory among nations. 20. And they shall bring all your
brethren from all nations, an oblation to Jehovah, with horses, and
with chariot, and with litters, and with mules, and with dromedaries,
on My holy mountain Jerusalem, saith Jehovah, as the children of
Israel bring the oblation in a clean vessel to the house of Jehovah.
21. And also of them, will I take for the priests, for the Levites,
saith Jehovah. 22. For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I
am making (or, about to make), are standing (or, about to stand)
before Me, saith Jehovah, so shall stand your name and your seed.
23. And it shall be (or, come to pass) that from new-moon to new-moon
(or, on every new-moon), and from Sabbath to Sabbath (or, on every
Sabbath), shall come all flesh to bow themselves (or, worship) before
Me, saith Jehovah. 24. And they shall go forth and gaze upon the
carcasses of the men who revolted (or, apostatised) from Me, for
their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched, and
they shall be a horror to all flesh.